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Free Medical School!
July 5, 2011 Okay, not really. That’s just the opinion of a couple doctors in “Why Medical School Should Be Free,” a column in The New York Times. Doctors Peter B. Bach and Robert Kocher write that in order to fix the healthcare system, there needs to be more primary care physicians like your family doctor. Currently, the majority of medical students shun primary care for specialties that pay more because of the high cost of med school. Bach and Kocher propose a plan that would make medical school free so that more people pursue careers as physicians. While the plan sounds great, it’s likely just a pipe dream. But, there are several other ways to reduce the high cost of education. Loan repayment programs help doctors and other health professionals pay back student loans in exchange for a commitment to work in a certain hospital, city or area of study. There are also several scholarships available for health professions students. One great example is Des Moines University’s Rural Medicine Educational Pathway, which covers the cost of tuition for medical students who commit to working as a primary care physician in rural Iowa for four years. So medical school can be free! Do you agree with the opinion of Bach and Kocher? If medical school were free, would you consider becoming a doctor?
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